Whispers in the Forest (Part 2)

"Ryker!" Kael called out, kicking his boot through the thick underbrush. His friend had just…disappeared. It wasn't right.

He had seen the vine that had dragged Ryker away, slithering like a snake. 

Was it possible this forest was sentient?

Kael knew he should be surprised, but after everything he'd seen since his arrival, nothing really surprised him anymore. 

"Kael!" Elysia called out from the other side of the fallen tree. "Do you see him?"

"I've got nothing!" he yelled back. But he did have an idea. 

He stepped up to a tree and raised his pickaxe. 

It was time to get the forest's attention. 

The blade sank deep into the bark, sending a reverberating crack through the still air. Splinters exploded outward, and for a moment, the forest remained eerily silent, as if holding its breath.

Then, the trees groaned.

It was subtle at first, a whisper of movement among the branches, but soon the sound grew—a low, creaking chorus that rippled through the forest. 

Leaves trembled despite the absence of wind. The earth beneath Kael's feet vibrated, as if something deep below had stirred awake.

Kael ripped his pickaxe free and swung again, harder this time. The impact sent another deep tremor through the tree, a challenge, a declaration of war.

The forest exhaled.

Vines slithered along the ground like living serpents, curling toward Kael's feet. Shadows deepened beneath the thick foliage, stretching unnaturally. The trees swayed, their branches twisting in ways that defied logic.

Elysia scrambled over the fallen tree, her breath ragged. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Getting its attention."

She grabbed his arm, forcing him to face her. "Are you insane? This thing just took Ryker. Do you want to be next?"

Kael yanked his arm free. "If this place wants to hunt us, fine. But I'm not letting it pick us off one by one."

Elysia cursed under her breath, but she didn't argue. Instead, she turned her eyes to the trees, scanning the shifting shadows.

A whisper slithered through the leaves.

You will pay for that. 

*******

The forest god watched with a bemused smile as the leader of the pack began to swing at one of his trees. 

The god traced the jagged scar that marred his face, his golden eyes narrowing. This one thought he could fight the forest? 

That he could challenge the very roots that had claimed this land long before humans had ever set foot here?

Good.

He relished a struggle.

They always fought before the end.

He whispered to the trees, and the forest responded.

It was ready to fight back. 

To kill the enemy. 

*******

Ryker's lungs burned as he gasped for air, dirt and crushed leaves clinging to his skin. 

The roots held him tight, their grasp like iron shackles, and for a moment, he had truly believed he was about to be swallowed whole by the earth.

Then, without warning, the ground loosened, and he was yanked upward—fast and without mercy.

Now, he dangled upside down, the rough coil of a vine digging into his ankle, swaying gently high above the forest floor. 

The canopy stretched out around him, the dim light filtering through the thick leaves casting strange, shifting patterns. Below, the ground was a dizzying blur of green and brown, impossibly far away.

He clenched his teeth, forcing his breathing to steady. Panicking wouldn't do him any good. Not when he had no idea what the hell had just grabbed him.

A sound—soft, deliberate—drew his attention.

Someone cleared their throat.

Ryker twisted, his body swaying slightly, and his eyes landed on a figure perched on a branch a few feet away.

It wasn't human.

The creature sat with an unsettling stillness, watching him. 

Its skin was the color of bark, its limbs long like the branches of a tree. It was as if his figure was carved from the very wood surrounding them. 

Golden eyes gleamed from beneath the tangled mass of moss and vines that draped over its form like a living cloak. Sharp, gnarled fingers idly traced the bark beneath it, the movement slow, methodical—like a predator waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Ryker swallowed hard.

"Well," he muttered, forcing out a dry laugh. "This is new."

The creature tilted its head, eyes narrowing slightly, as if considering his words. Then, in a voice like rustling leaves, it finally spoke.

"You have trespassed upon my kingdom. Punishment is in order, human."